Tel Aviv-based do@ (pronounced “do at”) probably won’t get you to stop using Google on your smartphone (iPhone exclusively right now) but it’s an intriguing new mobile “search engine” that takes a very different approach to delivering content on the go. The company, which also announced $7 million in new funding, doesn’t index pages. Instead […]
In an effort to clarify to users where their click-through will take them, Google says it will display the landing page domain as part of the headlines on some top placement ads. We reported on tests of this display earlier this month after they were spotted by Nilaye Thakrar of Workopolis. The change should result […]
If you’re an iOS device user, you’ll probably notice that the search results in Google’s search app look a little different next time you search. Google says the font has been enlarged to make search results easier to read. It’s not just about bigger text; now, the entire result is clickable, not just the underlined […]
Google announced some new features that are being rolled out to Google News users. The features include expandable and collapsable news clusters, story labels displaying diversity information, more multiple media content, more personalized news stories and changing the default view from a two column view to a one column view. I personally do not see […]
Over the weekend, I received a dozen or so emails, tweets and other notifications of a new Google search results page interface and layout. I personally do not see it, but from the screen shots shared with me, it doesn’t look pretty. There is a lot of white space, dotted lines to separate one search […]
Google seems to be testing a new variation on AdWords display, showing the landing page domain name at the end of the headline, after a short vertical line. The apparent experiment appeared in the top three ads in the center of the page on Google.com, but isn’t showing up for most users. The variation was […]
YouTube has updated their search filters and search refinements today. The new YouTube search enhancements include: (1) Filtering helps you restrict your search based on specific categories. You can choose any of the Filter options above to refine your search. (2) Exploring allows you to replace or add topics to your search. Clicking on a […]
The Microsoft News Blog noticed Bing testing out a new user interface for the vertical search engine links. Instead of having the links to the vertical search properties on the middle section left hand side of the page, the links are at the top. A Microsoft spokesperson told us, “We’re constantly updating and refining the […]
Reflecting the growing number of content types on its platform, Facebook has changed its search results display — the drop-down that appears as soon as users begin typing in the Facebook search box. The new display is organized into different content types, replacing the old version which showed results in a straight list format with […]
A week ago, we reported on a new top navigation bar Google began testing. Now it’s official. Google tells Search Engine Land that the new navigation bar is being rolled out to everyone.
Google is often changing and experimenting with their web search interfaces. Most recently, Google switched back from the purple AdWords background color the the yellow color. There are at least three new changes Google has implemented or is testing on their search results interface. (1) Google Instant Works For Search Operators: As reported at Google […]
In July 2010, Google changed the color of the AdWords background from yellow to purple. Now, less 7 months after the switch, it appears Google has gone back to the yellow color. Here is a screen shot of the yellow background color from today and directly below it a screen shot of the purple color […]
Google has redesigned the homepage for its AdWords advertiser interface in an effort to bring more relevant, customized information up front for marketers. The main change for the “home” tab is that advertisers can create their own modules based on saved filters created on the campaign interface. Filters let advertisers identify problems with their campaigns, […]
There were two Google navigation changes that people have started to notice. The first was making the Google search left hand bar more compact and the second was changing the menu choices in the top menu while in Gmail. Google Operating System reported the more compact version of the Google web search side bar. Google […]
Some users have been seeing the tests for a while, and now Google has formally launched a new Google Maps display that makes the different viewing options much more visible. The old display, with its horizontal row of text-based buttons … … has been replaced by what Google is calling an “all-inclusive widget.” It’s more […]
Reports keep coming in that Google is testing a new format for its top three ads. The new format — in which the headline is combined with the first description line, or the two description lines are combined — has been spotted as far afield as the United Kingdom. The effect, some have suggested, makes […]
Patrick Altoft spotted Google testing a new form of search refinements named “top references.” Patrick explains the refinement filters you to search through all the existing search results for a specific keyword that show any pages referencing or sourcing that image. Patrick added, “the interesting part of this feature is that unlike other filters the […]
What is the best approach to utilizing keywords in site navigation? Balance is the key to successful keyword placement in a search-engine friendly website.
There’s no specific blog for Google’s Realtime search, so the folks in that department used their Twitter account to spread the news that Realtime has tweaked how its search results look. The new stuff seems to be what you see in the right column. The trend graph and date options previously showed right below the […]
TechCrunch has live blog coverage of the interview by Michael Arrington and Google’s Marissa Mayer at the LeWeb ’10 in Paris, France. Mayer talked about Google’s next big thing, she coined it “contextual discover.” Contextual discovery, Mayer explained, encompasses “local Search, Maps, Earth, Latitude, and all the local products.” By “taking a users location as […]
Clickability, or perceived visual affordance, is a key element of search-engine friendly website design. How do searchers and search engines perceive clickable and unclickable elements?
It has been quite some time since Yahoo updated its pioneering and once-dominant local destination, Yahoo Local. Now the company is testing a simplified UI that streamlines the user experience and offers new content (including deals) in a number of cities. Below are screens showing the current and new Local UIs. First the existing site […]
It’s probably a safe bet that large numbers of people don’t use many of the enhanced features and content layers of Google Maps. I don’t have any empirical data to support this assertion but that’s my hunch. Google may now be experimenting with ways to make some of those features more prominent. Here’s an image […]
Yahoo is following Google by rolling out its own version of Google Instant, with a twist. Called “Rich Search Assist,” the feature automatically shows results as you type, though only in the top half of the page.
Google has finally released the beta AdSense management interface they have been testing for over a year now to all publishers. AdSense publishers will now or soon be able to see the new interface via a link at the top of the old interface or by visiting google.com/ads/newadsense. Afraid to try out the new beta […]
The Google News Blog announced a few tweaks to the mobile News site for Android, iPhone and Palm Pre devices. The changes include: Easier to click on stories, making the click area larger Default to collapsed “more stories sources” to make more articles viewable Here are screen shots: This small update comes after a year […]
A month ago, Google began testing labeling the AdWords ads as “ads”. Prior, Google labeled those AdWords ads as “sponsored links,” which is how they have been named for as long as I can remember. Today, it seems like everyone should now be able to see the AdWords listings labeled as “ads” as opposed to […]
Facebook does many things well but search still isn’t one of them. Over the past year Facebook has taken steps to improve its search usability; and Microsoft has been working with Facebook to do a better job with web search on Facebook. Search remains a major opportunity for both Facebook and Bing, which hasn’t yet […]
Local.com is one of the veterans in the local search segment but its consumer destination site has generally lagged competitors in several ways. The company has now rectified that to a significant degree by launching a totally overhauled UI and user experience. There’s also considerable new or enhanced content that didn’t previously exist. The new […]
Google is allowing searchers to go back to the classic Google Image search design. In July, Google revamped their Image Search design, which provided a “tiled” layout, infinite scroll, larger thumbnail images and a hover preview that offers more information about the image. To revert back to the old design, conduct any search on Google […]
In April, Google began recommending brands for select queries. The queries tend to be generic shopping queries. Now, Google seems to have added “stores” and “types” to the brand recommendations. Here is a search query for [cameras] showing the new brands, stores and types refinements: This also works for [diamonds], gps], [basketball], [netbooks and many […]
The Google Operating System blog has a picture of a possible maps experiment for testing how users interact with the layers available in Google Maps. The new buttons seem to be cleaner and easier to read and use. Here is a picture of the new test: Here is the existing user interface: As you can […]
Google has upgraded its Feedburner analytics product and, in the process, also added real-time stats for individual feed items. But it’s still a very limited product and, in a couple areas, actually seems to be a downgrade from the existing Feedburner stats. The new interface brings Feedburner’s “look and feel” much closer to what Google […]
I reported this morning via a WebmasterWorld thread that Google is testing a new AdWords Preview Tool at this URL. I do not believe Google has announced this new version yet, but from what I can see there are a few minot functional changes. Plus the user interface looks a bit cleaner. Here are before […]
Google TV is here! It includes a full web browser, so if you have a lot of video content, you might want to optimize for larger screens and audiences who are sitting on their couches. Fortunately, Google has published some optimization tips. In a blog post, they suggest optimizing for the “10-foot user interface” and […]
I’m not seeing it exactly but Google has said the company is making location more “transparent” or more obvious to users so that they can control it and, presumably, offer better location information to Google for an improved overall experience. From the Google Public Policy Blog: Today we’re moving your location setting to the left-hand […]
Amit Agarwal reports Google is testing scrollable images on the Google India home page. I personally do not see it, but here is a picture and video from Amit. I should note, Google Korea has had an animated home page in the past. But these images on Google India seem very interesting. Amit explains the […]
Google is now “segmenting” and separating local reviews from third parties such as Yelp from those of its own user-reviews. It has also added favicons next to the third party reviews to offer some “branding” on Places Pages. David Mihm noticed this yesterday. Here’s what it looks like on a Places Page for popular San […]
William Vicary tweeted that he is seeing a colorful Google top navigation bar. The navigation bar is very similar to what is there now, except for the colored stripe at the top and the settings icon at the right of your email address. I assume the icon replaces web history, settings and signout links to […]
Chris Hamlin emailed me screen shots of Google testing a new layout for the Google Sitelinks, the little links under a search result that provide quicker navigation to important pages within the site. Here are some screen shots sent by Chris, showing bolded links, with URLs, followed by normal sitelinks. Single one line sitelinks, and […]